1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to multiphase switches and more particularly to an improved and more economical fusible switch assembly.
2. Summmary of the Prior Art
A fusible switch is usually mounted in an enclosure and incorporates an insulating base and arc suppressor housing formed from a cold mold insulating material which may include asbestos. The base carries an incoming line terminal for each phase of a multiphase circuit with a switch for each phase having a pivotable knife blade operable to engage a stationary spring contact and extend a respective circuit through a fuse clip having a fuse seated therein. The arc suppressor housing overlaps the stationary contact of the switch and contains arc suppressor plates with the suppressor housing and plates being slotted to pass the movable knife blade.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,590,200 a rotor of insulating material is shown located below a partition wall with the rotor held in a pivot position by a spring adjacent one end of the rotor. The knife blades projected from their pivots adjacent respective fuse clips into respective notches in the rotor for movement in opposite directions in response to pivoting movement of the rotor in a respective direction. Other arrangements such as shown in a copending application filed simultaneously herewith by Drilling and Reed utilize a one piece rotor having a pivot boss extending through a compartment wall and retained in the base by a C ring with the pivot boss being located on a radial arm of the rotor. Both arrangements are complicated and space consuming.
While the above mentioned patent did not show a suppressor housing, as may be seen from U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,706,868; 3,575,566; 3,596,026 and 3,588,413 and from the aforementioned application it is a practice to provide an arc suppressor housing assembly with U shaped arc suppressor plates in the housing assembly simply resting in respective grooves and retained between several parts of the housing assembly. The arrangement requires disassembly of the several housing parts from each other for replacement of the plates.